1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a monoclonal antibody which binds to an antigen on the megakaryocytic cell line UT-7.
Antibodies of this kind are generally known.
2. Description of the Related Art
Until now, diagnostic analyses have been carried out either microscopically according to cell morphology after staining with classical staining methods, for example staining according to Pappenheim, and by manually counting. In modern methods for analysis of bone marrow biopsies or blood samples antibodies detecting specific antigens as markers for specific cell types and cell stages are used. The recognized antigens can be detected automatically using standard methods like EEISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay) or flow cytometry (FACS analysis, fluorescence activated cell sorting) in an automatic manner. Adequate antibodies having a high sensitivity and above all specificity for the different cell types and cell stages and additionally being available in large amounts are essential for the application of these kinds of methods.